Global Board of Trade Ltd. (GBOT) (http://www.gbot.mu) is the first international multi-asset bourse from Mauritius that offers participants, from across the globe, access to a tech centric market that is regulated, liquid and transparent with efficient clearing and settlement systems. GBOT’s state of the art infrastructure provides a world class platform for risk management, trading and investment on global and African products.

The bourse is licensed and regulated by Financial Services Commission (FSC), Mauritius to offer trading in commodity derivatives, currency derivatives, equity cash and equity derivatives. The current product offering of the bourse includes commodity derivatives, currency derivatives and CFDs.

GBOT is promoted by the Financial Technologies Group (http://www.ftindia.com), a global leader in setting up and operating tech-centric next generation exchanges in the emerging but fast growing economies from Africa to Asia and Middle East to South-East Asia.

EBENE, Mauritius, May 7, 2013/African Press Organization (APO)/ –

• GBOT has successfully launched CFDs on 18th April 2013

• GBOT is the 1st exchange in Africa and 2nd in the world to introduce CFDs

Global Board of Trade (http://www.gbot.mu), the first international multi‐asset bourse from Mauritius has successfully launched Contracts for Difference (CFDs). The launch of CFDs on GBOT makes it the 1st exchange in Africa and 2nd in the world to introduce CFDs.

GBOT CFDs will replicate the spot price performance of underlying assets and give traders and investors easy and seamless exposure to USD denominated currencies, commodities, equities and indices. The introductory CFD contracts on GBOT will include GOLD (1 Troy Ounce), WTI Crude Oil (10 Barrels), EUR/USD (1000 Euro) and GBP/USD (1000 GBP). The small sized products are launched with the objective of taking markets to the masses by allowing the investor to trade with as low as USD 20. As the market matures, GBOT will scale up its operations along with its CFD product portfolio to suit the preferences of its members and aid their business expansion.

By definition, Contract for Difference (CFD) means a standardized derivative traded on GBOT where a buyer and a seller agree to exchange the difference in value of a particular underlying between the time when the Contract is opened and when it is closed. CFDs are leveraged instruments that allow traders to hold large positions on commodities, currencies, equities and indices with a small margin deposit. Traders can take advantage of both rising and falling markets. The standardized GBOT CFD contracts will offer enhanced transparency, no counterparty risk, high return potential, low entry threshold and no levy of overnight rollover and open interest charges.

Ms. Clairette Ah-Hen, Chief Executive of Financial Services Commission, Mauritius said: “The launching of CFDs represents yet another milestone in our financial services landscape as it will enable both local and overseas investors, be it individual or institutional, to diversify further their investments. CFDs may bring more value-addition by enabling investors to take advantage of both rising and falling share prices. Small investors too will be able to trade on CFDs, given the low capital entry requirement. The overall result will be enhanced liquidity and buoyancy in the market, thereby attracting more international buyers and improving the visibility of our jurisdiction.”

Mr. Jignesh Shah, Chairman & Managing Director of Financial Technologies Group, India and Vice-Chairman of Global Board of Trade, said: “The launch of CFDs on GBOT reinstates our vision of taking Wall Street to the Man on Street. We have been successfully implementing our model of organized markets for masses from Asia to Middle-East and are committed to lead the development of African Financial Markets with GBOT.”

Commenting on the launch of CFDs, Mr. Rinsy Ansalam, MD & CEO of GBOT, said: “A key ingredient towards a vibrant capital is product innovation and the launch of CFDs is yet another initiative of GBOT that will democratize markets and allow the smallest investor to participate. The target market range of this segment includes fund houses, traders, students, house wives and people with no finance background. As a CFD pre-launch initiative, GBOT has conducted over 50 workshops to educate over 500 participants on its features and advantages. Through education, we are simplifying financial markets for masses.”

The Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group – born in early 2012 – is one of the world’s largest and most dynamic hotel groups. The portfolio of the Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group includes more than 1,300 hotels, a global footprint spanning 80 countries, a powerful set of global brands (Radisson Blu, Radisson®, Country Inns & Suites by CarlsonSM, Park Inn by Radisson, Hotel Missoni and Park Plaza®). In most of the group’s hotels, guests can benefit from the loyalty program Club Carlson, one of the most rewarding loyalty programs in the world. The Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group and its brands employ more than 80,000 people.The Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group is headquartered in Minneapolis, USA, and Brussels, Belgium. http://www.carlsonrezidor.com; http://www.rezidor.com

The Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, one of the fastest growing hotel companies worldwide, announces their 49th hotel deal in Africa: The Radisson Blu Hotel, Port Harcourt Olympia in Nigeria is scheduled to open in 2016 and will add a further 206 rooms to Rezidor’s portfolio of 11,000 rooms on the continent.

“This announcement brings the total number to eight hotels which the Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group operates and has under development in Nigeria. The success of the Radisson Blu Lagos illustrates the increasingly high demand for world class hospitality in Africa’s second largest economy,” comments Andrew McLachlan, Vice President Business Development Africa & Indian Ocean Islands.

“The new Radisson Blu Hotel, Port Harcourt Olympia complements the existing Radisson Blu Anchorage Hotel in Lagos; the up and coming Radisson Blu Hotel in Abuja, and the Park Inn properties by Radisson in Lagos, Apapa, Ikeja, Abeoukuta and Abuja. Nigeria is a key development market for Rezidor – the group will be the first international operator to provide world-class hotel standards in the three major financial hubs of Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt”, McLachlan adds.

Opposite the Port Harcourt Club 1928 Golf course and offering spectacular views over the fairways and greens, the Radisson Blu hotel site is located in the southern part of the city in the less congested old Government Reserve Area. Besides 206 guest rooms all featuring Radisson Blu signature services such as free high speed internet access, the hotel will also offer an all-day dining restaurant, a specialty restaurant & bar, and the largest conference facilities within the Niger Delta, with 2,100 square metres of conference and meeting space. Additionally there will be a gym, spa, outdoor swimming pool, business centre and rooftop bar & terrace.

Port Harcourt is the economic hub of the Niger Delta and the capital of Rivers State, one of Nigeria’s richest states due its large crude oil and natural gas deposits. It is home to major oil companies, banking institutions and government agencies. Hotel room supply in the city has not grown for several years, and the Radisson Blu business and conference hotel will benefit from being the most modern internationally branded property in the city.

“With no significant increase in hotel room supply in Port Harcourt since 2006, we feel the time is ripe to establish a Radisson Blu in Port Harcourt for the business traveler,” remarks McLachlan, “Carlson Rezidor has the largest pipeline of rooms under development in sub-Saharan Africa. This signing further strengthens our leading position and underlines the importance Nigeria has for our group”.

ABUJA, Nigeria, March 29, 2013/African Press Organization (APO)/ – On February 6, 2013, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the 2012 Article IV consultation with Nigeria.1

Background

Macroeconomic performance has been broadly positive over the past year. Real gross domestic product (GDP) growth is projected to have decelerated slightly to 6.3 percent, reflecting the effects of the nationwide strike in early 2012, floods in the fourth quarter of 2012, and continued security problems in the north. Annual inflation increased from 10.3 percent (end-of-period) in 2011 to 12.3 percent in 2012, owing mainly to the adjustment of administrative prices of fuel and electricity; large increases in import tariffs on rice and wheat; and the impact of floods in Q3. The external position has strengthened and international reserves rose from US$32.6 billion at end-2011 to US$44 billion at end-2012 (5½ months of prospective imports), driven by sustained high oil prices, stricter administration of the gasoline subsidy regime, and strong portfolio inflows.

The fiscal policy stance was tightened in 2012 and fiscal buffers are being rebuilt. The non-oil primary deficit of the consolidated government is estimated to have narrowed from about 36 percent of non-oil GDP in 2011 to 30.5 percent in 2012, mainly due to expenditure restraint. Monetary policy remained tight in 2012 in response to inflationary pressures. The central bank kept its policy rate unchanged during the year but raised the cash reserve requirement for banks from 8 percent to 12 percent and lowered allowable open foreign exchange position for banks. Financial soundness indicators point to continued improvements in the health of the banking system.

In 2013, growth is expected to recover to above 7 percent. Inflation is projected to decline below 10 percent, supported by the tight monetary policy stance and ongoing fiscal consolidation. The key downside risks are a large drop in world oil prices; and slow progress in building consensus around key fiscal reforms.

Executive Board Assessment

Executive Directors commended the authorities for prudent macroeconomic policies that have underpinned a strong economic performance in recent years. Looking ahead, Directors agreed that widespread unemployment and poverty remain key challenges for policymakers, and called for renewed efforts to make economic growth more broad-based and inclusive.

Directors supported the authorities’ strategy of consolidating the fiscal position while opening up policy space for needed investment in infrastructure and human capital. To this end, they underscored the need to improve tax administration, better prioritize public expenditure, strengthen public financial management, and improve the fiscal framework. In particular, they encouraged the authorities to reduce poorly-targeted fuel subsidies, adopt a rule to set the reference oil price in the budget, and fully operationalize the Sovereign Wealth Fund as soon as possible. Efforts to mobilize public support for these reforms should be intensified.

Directors considered the current tight monetary stance to be consistent with the authorities’ objective of reducing inflation to single digits. They also took note of the staff’s assessment that the exchange rate in real effective terms is broadly in line with fundamentals.

Directors commended the authorities’ success in restoring financial stability after the 2009 banking crisis. In light of this achievement, they recommended winding down the operations of the asset management company to curb moral hazard and fiscal risks. Directors welcomed the central bank’s commitment to address supervisory and regulatory gaps identified in the Financial Stability Assessment Update, particularly the need to strengthen cross-border supervision and the regime against money laundering and terrorism financing.

Directors concurred that wide-ranging reforms are key to make growth more inclusive. They agreed on the importance of supporting sectors with high employment potential, not through protectionist measures or tax incentives but rather with initiatives to improve governance, the investment climate, and competiveness. Directors welcomed reforms underway in the energy sector, and looked forward to an early passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill which would boost investment, government revenue, and fiscal transparency. They also encouraged the authorities to promote market-based access to credit for small- and medium-sized enterprises.

Nigeria: Selected Economic and Financial Indicators, 2009–2013

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Act. Act. Act. Act. Proj.

National income and prices

(Annual percentage change,

Unless otherwise specified)

Real GDP (at 1990 factor cost)

7.0 8.0 7.4 6.3 7.2

Oil and Gas GDP

0.5 5.2 -0.6 1.8 4.9

Non-oil GDP

8.3 8.5 8.9 7.1 7.5

Production of crude oil (million barrels per day)

2.2 2.5 2.4 2.4 2.5

Nominal GDP at market prices (trillions of naira)

25.1 34.4 37.8 43.1 48.1

Nominal non-oil GDP at factor cost (trillions of naira)

17.7 19.9 22.5 26.9 31.1

Nominal GDP per capita (US$)

1,110 1,465 1,522 1,637 1,686

Consumer price index (end of period)

12.5 13.7 10.8 12.7 8.2

Current account balance (percent of GDP) 1

8.3 5.9 3.6 4.7 4.0

Consolidated government operations

(Percent of GDP)

Total revenues and grants

17.8 20.0 29.9 28.1 26.7

Of which: oil and gas revenue

10.6 14.0 23.4 21.5 19.9

Total expenditure and net lending

27.3 26.9 29.4 27.1 26.7

Overall balance

-9.5 -6.9 0.5 0.9 0.0

Non-oil primary balance (percent of non-oil GDP)

-26.8 -34.3 -36.0 -30.4 -28.3

Excess Crude Account / SWF (US$ billions) 2

7.1 2.7 4.6 9.7 18.1

Money and credit

(Change in percent of broad money at the beginning of the period, unless otherwise specified)

1Large errors and omissions in the balance of payments suggest that the current account surplus is overestimated by a significant (but unknown) amount.

2Consistent with federal, state, and local governments.

1 Under Article IV of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, the IMF holds bilateral discussions with members, usually every year. A staff team visits the country, collects economic and financial information, and discusses with officials the country’s economic developments and policies. On return to headquarters, the staff prepares a report, which forms the basis for discussion by the Executive Board. At the conclusion of the discussion, the Managing Director, as Chairman of the Board, summarizes the views of Executive Directors, and this summary is transmitted to the country’s authorities. An explanation of any qualifiers used in summings up can be found here: http://www.imf.org/external/np/sec/misc/qualifiers.htm.

Atlantic Energy (http://www.atlanticenergy.com) is a private upstream oil and gas group founded by Nigerian and international exploration and production (“E&P”) executives with an extensive track record and experience in the Nigerian E&P sector. The company currently operates in Nigeria and will continue in its Enduring Commitment to develop Nigeria and its abundant resources through energy and infrastructural development.

LAGOS, Nigeria, March 6, 2013/African Press Organization (APO)/ – Atlantic Energy was a platinum sponsor at the recently concluded 13th Nigerian Oil and Gas conference, one of Africa’s largest oil and gas conference held in Abuja was a gathering of over 1000 national and international senior level delegates from the Upstream, Midstream and Downstream sectors of the oil and gas industry.

The Co-Chief Executive Officer of Atlantic Energy, Mr. Scott Aitken chaired the panel discussion on the topic: “Focus on Independents – How are Indigenous Companies Transforming the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry? Key points that were discussed included: (1) Creating an enabling environment to encourage Nigerian companies to enter and expand operations; (2) what are the fiscal and regulatory incentives that indigenous companies require? (3) How can indigenous companies access the technical know-how and financing to further their operations? (4) The divestment process from IOCs to indigenous companies successes and pitfalls?

Mr. Aitken noted that while IOCs are responsible for over 90% of production in Nigeria, there are hundreds of undeveloped onshore discoveries, therefore, there is a need for more indigenous companies like Atlantic Energy to join in taking the Nigerian Oil and Gas industry forward.

He also noted that recently, the Nigerian government tasked the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), an operator (and fully owned subsidiary of the NNPC) who are in a strategic alliance with Atlantic Energy to develop a number of NPDC’s assets to drastically increase its production of crude oil and natural gas.

NPDC has 130,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd) of current production with a target of reaching 250,000 bopd by 2015 and significantly increasing the supply of domestic gas to the country to enable an increase in power generation and support local manufacturing industries. Atlantic Energy through its Strategic Alliance with NPDC, will assist NPDC attain this target.

Additionally, he stated that a significant portion of the Nigeria’s marketed natural gas is processed into LNG and this natural gas only constituted 4% of the country’s energy consumption as at 2010; however, the power sector privatization is driving an increased demand for gas, with an installed capacity of 7,000 MW and a target capacity of 16,000 MW by the end of 2013.

Mr. Aitken further stated the challenges facing companies like Atlantic Energy and the wider industry and proffered solutions to the problems raging from old infrastructure, Swamp and land terrain, community stakeholder relationships and expectations, multiple partners/new models, to ambitious targets can be addressed through detailed evaluation and phased infrastructure replacement/upgrade, encouragement of swamp and land terrain asset management, community engagements and updates should be assessed, there should be project prioritization and clear centralization management structures including strong relationship building and there is a need to have fast track solutions to deliver early results to fund further development.

Libya could generate approximately five times the amount of energy from solar power than it currently produces in crude oil, research by Nottingham Trent University shows.

A study led by the university’s School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment found that the oil-rich nation could generate enough renewable power to meet its own demand and a “significant part of the world energy demand by exporting electricity”.

Libya is located on the cancer orbit line and is exposed to the sun’s rays throughout the year with long hours during the day. It has an average daily solar radiation rate of about 7.1 kilowatt hours per square metre per day (kWh/m²/day) on a flat plane on the coast and 8.1kWh/m²/day in the south region. By comparison, the UK’s average solar radiation rate is less than half that amount at about 2.95kWh/m²/day.

If the North African country – which is estimated to be 88 per cent desert – used 0.1% of its landmass to harness solar power, it could produce the equivalent to almost seven million barrels of crude oil per day in energy, the study found. Currently, Libya produces about 1.41 million barrels of crude oil per day.

Researcher Dr Amin Al-Habaibeh, who is leading the Innovative and Sustainable Built Environment Technologies research group at the university, said: “Although Libya is rich in renewable energy resources, it is in urgent need of a more comprehensive energy strategy. It is difficult to break the dependency on oil and natural gas, not just in terms of the country’s demand for it, but also in terms of the revenues that it generates.

“Renewable energy technology is still in its early days in Libya and a clear strategy and timetable is needed to take it forward. In particular, work needs to be done to develop the skills and knowledge needed to install and maintain renewable energy systems.”

The study also found that Libya has the potential to generate significant amounts of wind power, as the country is exposed to dry, hot and prolonged gusts.

“Wind energy could play an important role in the future in meeting the total electric energy demand,” added Ahmed Mohamed, a Nottingham Trent University PhD student, from Libya, who worked on the project.

“Several locations, including a number along the coast, experience high wind speeds which last for long periods of time.

“If Libya could harness only a tiny fraction of the renewable energy resources it has available in the form of solar and wind power, not only could it meet its own demands for energy, but also a significant part of the world’s demands by exporting electricity.

“The availability of renewable energy could provide a good complement to meet peak loads and current energy demand, and this in turn can be a good reason for encouraging wind and solar energy projects in Libya.”

Dr Hafez Abdo, a senior lecturer in accounting at Nottingham Business School, who also supervised the study, added: “This study tackles a significant emerging issue that is related to the feasibility of implementing renewable energy options in an oil and gas rich country such as Libya. The study explores whether the benefits outstrip the costs of implementing these options, and if not then when this would be likely to happen.

“This study can be applied to other countries such as the UK as an oil producing country and Japan, for example, as a net oil and gas importer country. The significance of this study arises from the fact that the final results should be a stepping stone for other studies to find a sufficient solution to energy security and climate change in the world.”

FARMINGTON, Conn., Jan. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire-iReach/ — The top 10 emerging oil and gas exploration and production markets include: the US Gulf of Mexico, Eagle Ford shale, Canada, the Santos basin in Brazil’s offshore region, Venezuela, Colombia, Poland and France in Europe, the western Siberian basin, Angola and Ghana in West Africa, and Mozambique and Tanzania in East Africa.

Of these 10 markets, Canada and Venezuela combined make up over 25% of the world’s extra-heavy oil and oil sands in proved oil reserves. In 2011, production from Canada’s oil sands and Venezuela’s extra-heavy oil belt posted approximately 581.9 MMbbl (million barrels) and 206.1 MMbbl, respectively. Set against the larger picture of oil production, unconventional oil only represented 3.1% of the global oil production industry in 2011. Meanwhile, sustained high crude oil prices continue to encourage the development of unconventional oil resources.

Global Top 10 Emerging Oil and Gas Exploration and Production (E&P) Markets – Market Analysis, Investment Scenario and Production Forecasts to 2020

In the Gulf of Mexico, although the number of new deepwater drilling permits declined since 2009, a rebound between September 2011 and March 2012 signaled a reduction in permit approval time and a gradual return to pre-blowout levels. These positive trends point to expectations that deepwater drilling in the US Gulf of Mexico will soon return to activity levels recorded before April 2010.

More highlights from the top 10 emerging oil and gas E&P markets include: Eagle ford shale – a sedimentary shale rock formation spanning 23 countries in south and east Texas – will emerge as a major crude oil production hub in the US. Home to 96% of the world’s oil sands, Canada has the third largest proved oil reserves on Earth. The Santos basin holds the highest volume of hydrocarbon reserves within the Brazilian subsalt region. Venezuela is the second largest developer of extra heavy oil reserves after Canada. In terms of resource potential, Poland and France represent key geographical locations for shale gas development in Europe. Angola and Ghana lead deep offshore oil and gas exploration in West Africa while Mozambique and Tanzania lead East Africa in the number of oil and gas discoveries made up until September 2012.

This report provides an overview of the top 10 emerging oil and gas E&P markets around the globe. An analysis of the major drivers and challenges affecting these leading markets, major exploration blocks and sedimentary basins, historic and projected crude oil and natural gas production are all provided in addition to financial deals activity and competitive landscape analyses.

Oil and Gas Exploration and Production in the North Sea – Market Analysis, Competitive Landscape and Forecast to 2020

Highlights from this report include: drivers of and challenges to oil and gas exploration and production in the North Sea region; major littoral countries’ contributions to the North Sea region’s total oil and gas production; key companies engaged in oil and gas exploration and production industry in the North Sea region; gross oil and gas production from the North Sea region, forecast until 2020; key exploration and production environment and infrastructure details in the UK, Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany; and an overview of the competitive landscape of the companies engaged in exploration and production activities in the North Sea region

Sustained high crude oil prices have been instrumental in making the development of unconventional oil resources economically viable. Oil prices above a certain threshold are essential for the development of unconventional oil projects as the development costs of unconventional oil projects are generally higher and therefore needs high oil prices to make them economical. Despite this seemingly precarious factor in the industry’s development, the price of crude oil is expected to remain over $80 per barrel in the long-term future and thus the development of production from unconventional oil projects remains attractive for oil companies.

About Global Information Inc. Global Information (GII) (http://www.giiresearch.com) is an information service company partnering with over 300 research companies around the world. Global Information has been in the business of distributing technical and market research for more than 25 years. Expanded from its original headquarters in Japan, Global Information now has offices in Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Europe and the United States.

This profile is the essential source for top-level energy industry data and information. The report provides an overview of each of the key sub-segments of the energy industry in South Africa. It details the market structure, regulatory environment, infrastructure and provides historical and forecasted statistics relating to the supply/demand balance for each of the key sub-segments. It also provides information relating to the crude oil assets (oil fields, refineries, pipelines and oil storage terminals) in South Africa. The report compares the investment environment in South Africa with other countries in the region. The profiles of the major companies operating in the crude oil sector in South Africa together with the latest news and deals are also included in the report.

Scope

Historic and forecast data relating to production, consumption, imports, exports and reserves are provided for each industry sub-segment for the period 2000-2020.

Historical and forecast data and information for all the major oil fields, refineries, pipelines and storage terminals in South Africa for the period 2005-2016.

Operator and equity details for major crude oil assets in South Africa.

Key information relating to market regulations, key energy assets and the key companies operating in the South Africas energy industry.

Information on the top companies in South Africa including business description, strategic analysis, and financial information.

November 2012, the leading Petroleum Conference & Consulting Company Euro Petroleum Consultants has announced the programme for ME-TECH 2013 – their annual Middle East Technology Forum. The event, taking place next February, will be the 3rd edition and will be held once more in the grand surroundings of the Madinat Jumeirah Conference Centre in Dubai. The conference has proven to be the essential meeting place for the Middle East Downstream Industry and an excellent platform to keep up-to-date with the latest key projects & technologies in this important region.

The Forum will take place over two days; running with two parallel conference streams on each day.

Day 1 will focus on latest technological developments in the Gas Processing & Oil Refining sectors with a strong focus on the key global market factors and their impact on the industrial development in the Gulf region.

Special attention will be paid to the impact of the US shale gas boom on Global LNG and Petrochemicals; the effects of the high crude oil price: impact on margins; latest proven technologies for clean fuels and how fuel substitution & energy efficiency could lead to a Zero (net) carbon Refinery.

Important areas to be covered in these two streams also include monetization of unconventional gas (shale gas, coal-bed methane), project updates on large scale urea plants, main issues of sour gas field development, accelerating process & catalyst development for syngas.

One paper expected to attract high interest is the presentation from FERTIL, which will focus on their highly anticipated Urea project – FERTIL-2.

The plant, located in the Ruwais Industrial Zone, will produce ammonia and urea, with a production capacity of 2,000MTPD and 3,500MTPD respectively. The start-up of the plant is planned for January 2013 and is one of the most discussed fertiliser projects in the region.

Day 2 of the conference will provide insight into development trends, major producer perspectives, technology updates and optimization strategies in Residue Upgrading & Petrochemicals sectors.

The Residue Upgrading stream will also include presentations by Chevron Lummus Global, UOP, Grace and many more.

NRL Pakistan will present at ME-TECH 2013 a joint paper with UOP looking at investing in the heavy oil refinery expansion project.

At the end of each day there will be a Round Table Discussions aimed to provide the delegates with the opportunity to exchange professional points of view, suggestions and ideas.

The Middle East Downstream Sector is facing numerous challenges including low margins, overcapacity and increasingly stringent quality environmental regulations (such as CO2 emissions) – meaning that the role of technology providers is now more important than ever to look at ways to improve efficiency and to process heavier sour crudes.

Adapted Technology solutions will help plant operators improve margins, move ahead of the competition and optimize their potential in this ever-changing market environment.

In the current climate, downstream industry professionals realize that in-depth industry knowledge, expertise and flexibility are imperative for success. For this reason specialised industry events are the ideal way for sharing ideas, exchanging practical advice/experience with their international colleagues, business partners and potential clients.

ME-TECH 2013 will be directly followed by the Russia & CIS Executive Summit – an event uniting top executives of the Downstream Industry, consultants, investors and financial institutions to discuss their strategies and business vision for the Russia & CIS markets.

Euro Petroleum Consultants is an independent consulting company in the Petroleum Industry with worldwide experience – in addition EPC ltd is well established as a leading producer of international oil & gas technology conferences and training seminars. Founded in 1996, EPC ltd has been helping clients in the Oil, Gas and Petrochemicals industry to achieve their project goals by providing Project Management Consulting (PMC) Services during all project phases. The company is active worldwide covering the Industry’s most important regions with offices in London, Moscow, Sofia, Kuala Lumpur and Dubai.

For more information about both conferences please contact the EPC Marketing Team at:

The ongoing work of the KFS, together with the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) and international partners, says that the contribution of forests is undervalued by 2.5 per cent, putting the estimate of its annual contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at around 3.6 per cent.

Hon. Dr. Noah Wekesa, Kenya’s Minister of Forestry and Wildlife, said the report – entitled ‘The Role and Contribution of Montane Forests and Related Ecosystem Services to the Kenyan Economy’ and launched at the beginning of the Kenya Water Towers, Forests and Green Economy National Dialogue – marked a new phase in efforts to conserve the vital ecosystem services provided by Kenya’s forests.

“The value of the Mau Forest’s ecosystem services to the Kenyan economy previously calculated by UNEP has already catalyzed a response to conserve and rehabilitate this vital resource,” he said. “This shows we have already acknowledged the importance of forests. However, this new report quantifies the massive scale of the economic damage deforestation brings and shows much more needs to be done nation-wide.”

Kenya’s five water towers – Mau Forest Complex, Mount Kenya, the Aberdares, Mount Elgon and Cherangani – feed filtered rainwater to rivers and lakes and provide more than 15,800 million cubic metres of water per year, which represents over 75 per cent of the country’s renewable surface water resources.

These forests store water during the rainy season and release it slowly, thus ensuring water flow during dry periods. The forests thus provide resilience to seasonal environmental and economic changes and long-term economic hazards like climate change. Aside from timber and fuel they also bring benefits to the agriculture, forestry and fishing sectors; the electricity and water sectors; the hotels and accommodation sector; and the public administration and defense sector.

Yet between 2000 and 2010, deforestation in the water towers amounted to an estimated 28,427 hectares, leading to reduced water availability of approximately 62 million cubic metres per year. Kenya’s economy is highly vulnerable to water availability. Inflation spiked above 10 per cent on three occasions between 2000 and 2010, each time driven by drought combined with increasing crude oil prices and weaker exchange rates.

“Kenya is today underlining its determination to be among a group of pioneering countries putting its nature-based assets at the centre of its sustainable development ambitions,” said Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and UNEP Executive Director.

“The findings of this report are based on the best international analytical methods and the latest environmental and economic evidence–it is these kinds of cutting-edge assessments that are inspiring more and more countries in Africa and beyond towards the opportunities presented in a transition to an inclusive Green Economy,” he added.

The main reasons for deforestation are multiple and complex: from unregulated charcoal production, logging of indigenous trees, marijuana cultivation, and cultivated fields in the indigenous forest to shamba-system practices, livestock grazing, quarry landslides and human settlements.

Fuel wood and charcoal represent the most important energy source for the population, at 75 per cent, and the forestry sector creates both formal and informal job opportunities, especially in rural areas.

As a result, deforestation has largely been driven by private consumption, as the demand of households has doubled within the last ten years. This number is also underestimated as it does not incorporate the informal sector, which has been expanding, particularly in rural areas where firewood is collected for free or exchanged for other goods.

While forest products bring in one-off cash to the national economy, they encourage illegal deforestation activities and create huge economic damage through the loss of regulating services.

The report quantified the following negative economic consequences of deforestation:

•    By 2010, the cumulative negative effect of deforestation on the economy through reduction in regulating services was an estimated KSh 3,650 million per year, more than four times the cash revenue of deforestation;

•    Decreased river flows in dry season reduces water supply to irrigation agriculture, at a cost of 1.5 billion shillings to the sector in 2010;

•    Reduced river flows also reduced hydropower generation by eight million shillings, producing a multiplier effect on the rest of the economy through power shortages (46 per cent of Kenya’s power comes from hydro generation);

•    Increased wet-season flows lead to erosion and sedimentation, resulting in a loss of productive soil resources, which in turn increases nutrient content in fresh water systems, causes siltation and increases turbidity of water supplies. This reduction in water quality reduced inland fish catch by 86 million shillings and increased the cost of water treatment for potable use by 192 million shillings in 2010;

•    Incidence of malaria as a result of deforestation is estimated to have cost 237 million shillings by 2010, in the form of health costs to the government and losses in labour productivity;

•    Forest loss is also detrimental to the global carbon cycle. The above-ground carbon storage value forgone through deforestation was estimated at 511 million shillings in 2010 (calculated at a value of US$6 per ton under the REDD+ scheme).

The Kenyan government has already recognized the value of its forests, and is working on the rehabilitation of the Mau Forest Complex. Over the last one-and-a-half years, more than 21,000 hectares of forestland have been repossessed, and 10,000 hectares have been rehabilitated by the Government of Kenya and partners.

A number of programmes and activities have also been started to improve the livelihoods of communities living adjacent to the forest and address the situation of the forest-dwelling communities, in particular the Ogiek.

With a view to expanding efforts to all water towers, the Government of Kenya gazetted the Kenya Water Towers Agency on 13 April 2012. The agency will take over the responsibilities of the Mau Secretariat and will be responsible for coordinating and supervising the rehabilitation, conservation and management of Kenyan water towers.

However, the report finds that there is a great deal of room for more activities, and makes the following recommendations:

•    Sustainable Forest Management contributes to national development with a ratio of more than four times that of the poor forest management that leads to deforestation, and should be incorporated. Sustainable actions include:

o Selective thinning regimes

o Protection against uncontrolled settlements;

o Adequate allocation and policing of water withdrawals;

o Improved management of degraded land;

•    Ensure that Kenya has in place a fully functioning forest resource account in order to capture the various benefits provided by forests;

•    Stronger regulation of forest use. For instance, the enacting of farm forestry, forest harvesting and charcoal regulations in 2009 represent an important step in the right direction and needs to be pursued;

•    Encourage investment in the forestry sector in order to increase the efficiency in production, especially in sawn timber and charcoal production;

•    Address the growing trend of dependence on imports of forest products, which constituted more than 50 per cent of domestic output for the year 2009;

•    Ensure adequate regeneration after harvest and an increased forest plantation growth in the long term, together with a better coordination of regulating institutions, producers and consumers of forest products;

Forests in Kenya also represent a great opportunity in terms of carbon storage and the use of carbon trading schemes, the report found.

The economic analysis also lends weight to the Inclusive Wealth Index, a joint initiative by the United Nations University International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change (UNU-IHDP) and UNEP.

The index, launched at Rio+20, is a new indicator which looks beyond GDP to include natural and human capital, thus encouraging governments to implement policies that encourage sustainable use of natural resources.

This profile is the essential source for top-level energy industry data and information. The report provides an overview of each of the key sub-segments of the energy industry in United Arab Emirates. It details the market structure, regulatory environment, infrastructure and provides historical and forecasted statistics relating to the supply/demand balance for each of the key sub-segments. It also provides information relating to the crude oil assets (oil fields, refineries, pipelines and storage terminals) in United Arab Emirates. The report compares the investment environment in United Arab Emirates with other countries in the region. The profiles of the major companies operating in the crude oil sector in United Arab Emirates together with the latest news and deals are also included in the report.

Scope

- Historic and forecast data relating to production, consumption, imports, exports and reserves are provided for each industry sub-segment for the period 2000-2020.

- Historical and forecast data and information for all the major oil fields, refineries, pipelines and storage terminals in United Arab Emirates for the period 2005-2016.

- Operator and equity details for major crude oil assets in United Arab Emirates.